Q:       I’m currently unemployed and unmarried. Do these facts impact my credit scores?

A:        No. Neither of these facts affects your scores. Also, your scores are not affected by the number of dependents you have, retirement, debt-to-income ratio, number of years on the job, income, a spouse’s credit, checking and overdraft account activity, savings account balances, net worth, service accounts (e.g., utility bills), rent payment history, or participation in a credit counseling or debt management program. Also, you must be more than 30 days beyond the account due date before your credit scores are impacted.

Q:       Will opening a new credit account affect my scores? 
A:        Yes. The computer model used for scoring initially penalizes you for seeking new credit. After several months, however, your having opened a new account should no longer be factored into your scores.

Q:       Can closing credit accounts affect my credit scores? 
A:        Yes. Your credit scores are affected by the ratio between the reported dollar limits on your accounts and the reported balances. Closed accounts are not factored into this ratio, so closing accounts may negatively affect the overall ratio and, therefore, your credit scores.

Q:       I’ve had one credit card for a long time, but never use it. Should I close that account?

A:        Using a credit card for a long time reflects a long credit history, which may improve your credit scores if you pay your bills on time. It may be wise to keep your account open and use it periodically. If you have not used a credit card for six months or more, you take a risk that the creditor may close your account and it will no longer be factored into your scores.

Q:       Would combining all my credit card balances onto one credit card improve my credit scores?

A:        Not necessarily. It is better to have small balances spread over several credit cards to improve your credit utilization ratio (which usually improves your credit scores).

Q:       I regularly run up high credit card balances, but pay my bills in full each month. How does this affect my credit scores?

A:        Even though you pay your accounts in full every month, running up high balances can damage your scores because the chances are slim that your balance will be “zero” on the particular day a creditor asks for your credit scores. You can avoid this by making payments multiple times during the month.

Q:       What will happen to my credit scores if I close a credit account that still has a balance?

A:        Closing accounts with a balance can cause a creditor to reduce the credit limit to the current balance. This creates a 100 percent utilization ratio, which hurts your credit scores. It is wise to pay the account in full before you close an account.

Q:       How can I boost my credit scores?

A:        Aside from establishing a long credit history and paying your bills on time, here are some additional tips:

·       Check your credit report periodically. Be on the lookout for creditors that lower your credit limits, which can lower your scores. If that happens, you will need to keep lower balances.

·       Apply for credit when you don’t need it. It may be easier to qualify, you may get better rates and you’ll have credit available if you need it. Although you may take a small hit on your score in the short term, in the longer term it can benefit your scores, assuming you manage your account responsibly.

·       Be careful about store promotions that offer discounts on the day you make purchases if you open a credit card. These offers typically give you a low credit limit. This means your credit utilization percentage can start out high, which can lowers your scores. Similarly, lowering your credit card limits to reduce your exposure may raise your utilization percentage, which may lower your scores. Try to raise your credit limits when possible, but keep your balances low (a utilization rate of 25 percent or lower is good.)

·       The type of credit accounts you have impacts your credit scores. The harder it is to qualify for credit, the more positive the impact on your scores.  For example, it is generally harder to qualify for a Visa© or MC© credit card than for a gasoline or retail store credit card.

·       “Good” credit can stay on your report forever. Most “bad” credit falls off after seven years, but YOU must monitor your reports to see that it has been removed.

·       If you need to rebuild your credit, obtain secured credit cards or small personal bank loans.

·       If you have an excellent score, protect it. Late payments hurt those with excellent scores more than those with “good” or “poor” scores.

Remember…an important consumer responsibility is knowing, managing and monitoring your credit reports and scores. 

This “Law You Can Use” column was provided by the Ohio State Bar Association. It was prepared by Richard Korn, a credit counselor at the Westerville Area Resource Ministry (WARM). Articles appearing in this column are intended to provide broad, general information about the law. Before applying this information to a specific legal problem, readers are urged to seek advice from an attorney.

Q:       What is a joint vocational school (JVS)? 
A:        JVS districts are considered public school districts in Ohio. They provide career-technical education and workforce development for students from member high schools, which are usually located within a designated geographic area. (As an alternative to becoming a member of a JVS district, a public high school may provide career technical education “in-house” and invite students from other public school districts to attend.) 

Q:       What kind of career preparation does a JVS provide?
A:        JVS districts provide students with training through hands-on labs and workforce development. Programs may be offered in a number of diverse fields, including but not limited to agriculture, business and marketing, construction, education, engineering and science, law and public safety, government and public administration, hospitality and tourism, health sciences and information technology. 

Q:       How are joint vocational schools funded?

A:        JVS districts receive per-pupil foundation payments from the state, similar to traditional public schools. In addition, JVS districts may receive funding from taxes assessed on property owners in the district. JVS districts are also eligible for federal funding. 

Q:       Are joint vocational school teachers licensed?
A:        JVS teachers are required to comply with all of the Ohio Department of Education’s certification and licensing requirements for career-technical educators. 

Q:       How are joint vocational school students tested?

A:        JVS students must take state-approved career-technical assessments. JVS students must also take all graduation tests required of traditional public school students.

Q:       Can a student who graduates from a JVS qualify for admission to a college or university?
A:        Yes. While some JVS programs prepare students to enter the workforce immediately after high school, many programs are specifically designed to prepare students to transition into postsecondary education. JVS districts are also required to offer students a “dual enrollment” opportunity, often achieved through the post-secondary options program, which allows students to earn college credit before they graduate from high school. 

Q:       Is transportation provided to joint vocational schools?

A:        Transportation must be provided to the JVS district by the public high school that serves as the student’s home district. Transportation is provided between the home district’s high school and the JVS. 

This “Law You Can Use” column was provided by the Ohio State Bar Association. It was prepared by attorney Mark A. Weiker of the Columbus firm Means, Bichimer, Burkholder & Baker Co., LPA. Articles appearing in this column are intended to provide broad, general information about the law. Before applying this information to a specific legal problem, readers are urged to seek advice from an attorney.

Q:       I heard legally married same-sex couples will now be treated as married for federal tax purposes. I was married in a state that allows same-sex marriages, but recently moved to a state that does not recognize our marriage. Will the IRS still recognize us as married for tax purposes even if our current state of residence does not?

A:        Yes. Due to a recent U.S. Department of the Treasury and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) ruling that takes effect Sept. 16, 2013, same-sex couples who were legally married in jurisdictions recognizing their marriages are to be treated as married for federal tax purposes. The ruling applies even if the couple lives in a jurisdiction that does not recognize same-sex marriage. This ruling implements federal tax aspects of the June 26, 2013 U.S. Supreme Court decision that invalidated a key provision of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act.

Q:       What “federal tax purposes” does the ruling cover?
A:        Under the ruling, same-sex couples will be treated as married for all federal tax purposes, including income and gift and estate taxes. The ruling applies to all federal tax provisions where marriage is a factor, including filing status, claiming personal and dependency exemptions, taking the standard deduction, employee benefits, contributing to an IRA and claiming the earned income tax credit or child tax credit.

Q:       Does the ruling apply to registered domestic partnerships?

A:        No. The ruling covers any same-sex marriage legally entered into in one of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, a U.S. territory or a foreign country, but it does not apply to registered domestic partners, who are not married under state law.

Q:       How should legally married same-sex couples file their 2013 federal income tax return?

A:        Beginning Sept. 16, any return filed by legally married same-sex couples generally must use either the “married filing jointly” or “married filing separately” filing status. Individuals who were in same-sex marriages may, but are not required to, file original or amended returns choosing to be treated as married for federal tax purposes for one or more prior tax years still open under the statute of limitations. 

Q:       What is the statute of limitations for filing a tax refund claim?

A:        Generally, you have three years from the date the return was filed or two years from the date the tax was paid, whichever is later, to file your claim. This means that in 2013 you can file refund claims for tax years 2010, 2011 and 2012. In some special circumstances (such as signing an agreement with the IRS to keep the statute of limitations open), taxpayers may be allowed to file refund claims for tax years 2009 and earlier.

Q:       I bought same-sex spouse health insurance coverage from my employer on an after-tax basis. Do I get any credit for that?

A:        Yes. You may treat the amounts you paid for that coverage as pre-tax and exclude those amounts from your taxable income.

Q:       How do I file a refund claim?

A:        To file a refund claim for income taxes, you should use Form 1040X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return. To file a refund claim for gift or estate taxes, use Form 843, Claim for Refund and Request for Abatement. For information on filing an amended return, see Tax Topic 308, Amended Returns, available on IRS.gov, or the Instructions to Forms 1040X and 843. You can find information about where to file your amended returns in the form instructions.

Q:       Will employers receive guidance about getting refunds for past benefits provided to same-sex spouses?

A:        Yes. The U.S. Treasury and the IRS intend to issue streamlined procedures for employers wishing to file refund claims for payroll taxes paid on previously taxed health insurance and fringe benefits provided to same-sex spouses. The Treasury and IRS also intend to issue further guidance on cafeteria plans and on how qualified retirement plans and other tax-favored arrangements should treat same-sex spouses for periods prior to the revenue ruling’s effective date of Sept. 16, 2013. Other government agencies also may provide guidance related to same-sex marriage on the federal programs they administer.

Q:       Where can I get more information?

A:        Visit www.IRS.gov for Revenue Ruling 2013-17, and to find updated Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about same-sex couples, registered domestic partners and individuals in civil unions.

This “Law You Can Use” column was prepared by the Ohio State Bar Association (OSBA). The information was provided by the Internal Revenue Service (www.IRS.gov). The column offers general information about the law. Seek an attorney’s advice before applying this information to a legal problem. For more information on a variety of legal topics, visit the OSBA’s website at www.ohiobar.org.

Q:       I’ve been hearing about “stand-your-ground” laws in the news. What does Ohio law say about using lethal force in a self-defense situation?

A:        In Ohio, if you use lethal force in self-defense you must prove, by a “preponderance” (greater weight) of the evidence, that you were properly acting in self-defense. Under current law, in order to act in self-defense, you must prove: 1) you were not at fault in creating the situation; 2) you had an honest belief and reasonable grounds to believe that you were in imminent danger of suffering serious physical harm or death, and that the only reasonable way to stop or avoid the attack was to use lethal force; and 3) you did not violate any duty to physically retreat from the situation.

Q:       When might I be “at fault in creating the situation?”

A:        A court would consider you to be at fault if you created the situation, unnecessarily prolonged it, or escalated the amount of force involved.  In other words, you cannot claim self-defense if you started the fight, or if you continued fighting after the other party tried to stop or abandon the fight, or if you escalated the force involved by, for example, pulling a gun in a fistfight.

Q:       How does a court decide whether I had reasonable grounds to believe that I was in imminent danger?

A:        Whoever is examining your claim of self-defense, whether it is the first police officer on the scene or the last juror, “steps into our shoes,” taking into account your age, gender, physical condition, medical condition, training, etc., and looks at the objective facts to determine if you were reasonable in concluding (your “honest belief”) that you were in imminent danger of serious physical harm or death.

Q:       Why would I have to prove that the only reasonable way to stop or avoid the attack was to use of lethal force?

A:        The law considers the taking of a human life to be a last resort.  To claim self-defense, you must establish that the only reasonable way you could have stopped or avoided the attack was to use of lethal force.  In the law, this is sometimes called a “last resort” test.

Q:       What is the “duty to physically retreat”?

A:        Before using lethal force, the law says you must physically retreat from the situation, if you can do so without taking unreasonable risks.  However, to the law does not require you to physically retreat from your own residence, place of business or vehicle.

Q:       What is a “stand-your-ground” law?

A:        Typically, “stand your ground” is a phrase used to describe a self-defense law that does not require a duty to physically retreat in a threatening situation.  This term is specific to each state’s law, and in some states “stand your ground” describes laws that go farther to protect self-defense rights than just removing a person’s duty to physically retreat.

Q:       What changes is Ohio considering to its self-defense laws?

A:        Ohio legislators are considering House Bill 203, which would entirely remove the duty to try to physically retreat from the situation. The proposed legislation also states, affirmatively, that a person does not have a duty to retreat as long as that person is someplace where they may legally be present. If H.B. 203 passes, you would have to prove, by a “preponderance of the evidence” that, in using lethal force against another person, you were properly acting in self-defense. Specifically, you would have to prove that: 1) you were not at fault in creating the situation; and 2) you had reasonable grounds to believe and an honest belief that you were in imminent danger of suffering serious physical harm or death, and that the only reasonable way to stop or avoid the attack was to use lethal force. If this bill passes, you would no longer have a duty to physically retreat from the situation, as current Ohio law requires.

This “Law You Can Use” column was provided by the Ohio State Bar Association. It was prepared by attorney L. Kenneth Hanson, of counsel at Firestone, Brehm, Wolf, Whitney and Young LLP in Delaware. Articles appearing in this column are intended to provide broad, general information about the law. Before applying this information to a specific legal problem, readers are urged to seek advice from an attorney.